To begin eliminating your rodent problems, start with a good inspection. Inspecting your home, shed or barn is important for determining which type of rodents are present: rats or mice. A good inspection provides three main valuable pieces of information:

Type of Infestation

Extent of Infestation

Location for Control Effort

Droppings

Search for Mouse Poop

The droppings mice leave behind communicate information to other mice, but they can also help you identify your specific problem and guide your selection of the most effective traps.

You may have noticed mouse poop, the little dark fecal pellets left behind by rodents, in your kitchen, bathroom or elsewhere in your home. Look around your basement, attic, garage, shed or barn for more signs of droppings. You'll notice that even a small population of mice can produce thousands of droppings in a short period of time.

An inspection of mice droppings provides you with valuable information that helps you figure out which pest you have, how big the problem is and, most important, how to trap the rodents fast.

Pest Identification

There are slight but significant differences in the characteristics of rodent droppings. Here are details that will help you determine what sort of pest problem you have.

Mouse

Qty: 50 to 75 pellets daily

Size: ¼ inch long

Shape: Small with 1 or both ends pointed

Norway Rat

Qty: 40 to 50 pellets daily

Size: ¾ inch long

Shape: Larger, rectangular with blunt ends

Found in small groups

Roof Rat

Qty: 40 to 50 pellets daily

Size: ½ inch long

Shape: Larger, curved, sausage-shaped with pointed ends

Found scattered

Age of Droppings

Fresh droppings are dark in color and soft in texture, but after three days they harden and lose the dark color. The age of mice droppings tells you how recently the rodents have been to the spot where you see them.

Size of Infestation

This one is pretty simple - the more droppings you have...the larger your infestation, which will help you determine your approach for rodent control.

Once you know which pest and how many you have, choose Victor® traps to catch mice and rats fast.